TL;DR: For most climbers a UIAA-certified dynamic climbing rope from 9.4-10.2mm in diameter and 60-70m in length will meet all their needs. Our overall favorite is the Bluewater Lightning Pro Double Dry (9.7mm, 70m)…but to see all our best climbing rope picks, check our guide to the Best Climbing Ropes of 2021.
Rope is a main component of every climbing safety system. Unless you’re bouldering or free soloing, your life depends on your climbing rope. From anchors to protection to belayers, it’s what brings the whole climbing safety system together. But buying a climbing rope is often overwhelming. How long should your rope be? How thick? Do you need a dry treated rope or not? What’s the difference between a half and twin rope? What do all the UIAA Safety Ratings mean? Is a more expensive rope better? Here, we look at all these questions to help you make an informed decision.
First we’ll go through the history of modern climbing rope, second we’ll talk about the safety ratings that all climbing ropes adhere to, and third we’ll go through the major features you’ll want to consider when buying a rope.
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Background: Modern climbing rope
All climbing ropes today are made up of two parts: 1. an interior core protected by a 2. woven exterior sheath. First produced by German company Edelrid in 1953, this design became known as kernmantle rope, from the German kern meaning “core” and mantel meaning “sheath”. The core provides most of the strength while the sheath provides abrasion and damage protection. Kernmantle rope made climbing much safer and essentially the same design is used today in virtually all climbing rope.
Two types: Dynamic Versus Static
Kernmantle climbing rope falls into two categories: dynamic and static. Dynamic rope is designed to stretch, which absorbs the force from a climber falling. Static ropes stretch very little, making them ideal for situations with a more static load (hauling, rescues, or ascending rope). The majority of climbers will only ever use dynamic ropes—don’t ever use static lines for top roping or lead climbing as they could cause serious injury or death.
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3 Types of Dynamic Rope
There are three choices for dynamic climbing rope: twin, half, and single. For the majority of applications, single ropes work great.
Single Ropes
Single ropes are designed to be used by themselves without another rope. They come in a wide variety of diameters and lengths, making them useful in many climbing scenarios. Most climbers only ever use single ropes—in fact, most climbers may have never even heard of or seen the other possible dynamic rope systems. If you’re top roping, sport climbing, or single pitch trad climbing, you’ll never have a need for either twin or half ropes—a single rope will meet all of your needs. Single ropes are marked with a 1 in a circle at each end.
Twin Ropes
Twin ropes are two thin ropes designed to be used together as if they were one rope. They’re most commonly used in alpine climbing, mountaineering, and some trad routes. As you lead, twin ropes are both clipped into every single protection piece. The advantages of twins ropes are 1. They’re individually lighter weight (so you can split this weight with your partner), 2. you can rappel extra long distances by tying them together, and 3. if one rope is cut or damaged you have the redundancy of an entire separate rope. Disadvantages include a more difficult belay and heavier weight overall. Twin ropes are marked by an infinity symbol ∞ inside of a circle at each end.
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Half Ropes
Half ropes are similar to twin ropes in that they are used together, but instead of being clipped into every protection piece they are alternated left and right. The major advantage is in climbing routes that wander or zig-zag a lot. By clipping one rope on the “left” and one rope on the “right” you get less rope drag by allowing the individual ropes to run more straight up the rock. Its other advantages are the same as twin ropes: ability to separate the weight between partners, longer rappels possible by tying the two strands together, and added redundancy if one rope is cut or damaged. Half ropes are marked by a ½ symbol inside of a circle at each end.
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UIAA Safety Ratings
When it comes to safety, the most important thing to know about your rope is that it’s UIAA certified. This is clearly marked on any certified rope. The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA) creates safety standards to which all climbing ropes must adhere. They use independent labs to perform tests and give every rope scores based on four categories: fall rating, static elongation, dynamic elongation, and impact force. You’ll see this information listed on every rope next to its diameter and weight. Virtually all ropes sold are UIAA-certified, so it shouldn’t impact your buying decision. Here’s more information about what the UIAA tests.
Fall rating
Fall rating is testing the rope to see how many falls it can hold before failing. The UIAA sets up a worst case scenario fall test and repeats it until the rope fails. For single ropes they must catch at least 5 falls before failing. And while this might seem low, the falls in the UIAA test are far more severe than any fall you will experience in normal climbing. In fact, there has never been a recorded case of a UIAA rope failing during normal use from the force of a fall alone. A higher fall rating number also does not mean a “stronger” rope. Fall rating measures core strength, while most ropes are retired due to wear and tear on the sheath. If your rope meets the UIAA standard for fall rating, it’s plenty strong enough to climb with.
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Dynamic elongation
Dynamic elongation tests how much a rope lengthens during its first test fall. Elongation (stretch) decreases impact force by absorbing energy, but too much stretch could mean a longer fall, causing the climber to hit a ledge or the ground. UIAA limits dynamic elongation to 40% of the total rope length. Dynamic elongation is most important for lead climbing when the force of a fall affects the climber, belayer, and protection.
Static elongation
Static elongation measures how much a rope stretches when a static weight is hung from it. For single ropes it cannot exceed 10% of the total rope length. For top-roping, hauling, and ascending fixed lines this number is important and you generally want a lower number.
Impact force
Impact force measures how much force is put on an object attached to the end of the rope during the first UIAA fall test. Higher impact forces can injure climbers and pull out protection pieces. Impact force is minimized by increasing dynamic elongation. Finding the balance between dynamic elongation and impact force can be difficult. Having low impact force ratings along with a low dynamic elongation is highly desirable. In real life examples though, impact force can also be heavily affected by the belayer’s weight and technique.
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Finally, how to actually choose your rope
We’ve established that when you’re in the market for a new climbing rope, you’re almost certainly going to be best served by a single, dynamic rope. At this point, finding the best rope is about finding the perfect balance of diameter, length, and weight that’s specific to your needs.
Diameter, Weight, and Length
Diameter is probably the most-discussed feature of climbing rope, since it affects the weight and durability of your rope. Single ropes range from 8.9 to 11mm, with most modern ropes falling in the 9.4 to 10.2mm range. Generally, thicker ropes are heavier and more durable, so it’s about finding the right trade-off between weight and durability. For uses that wear heavily on a rope, like top roping or aid climbing, you might want a thicker rope, whereas every gram counts if you’re doing long alpine or trad routes. Here’s a short table to help you decide which diameter range you’ll want to target.
| Primary use | Suggested diameter range |
| Top-roping, big wall/aid climbing | 10mm+ |
| General trad or sport climbing | 9.5-9.9mm |
| Very hard or long sport climbs | 9.1-9.4mm |
| Long alpine routes | 8.9-9.1mm |
Weight
Weight is affected by the diameter and length of a rope, and also by the density of the weave. Manufacturers these days are weaving tighter and tighter sheaths, which decrease diameter while maintaining strength and durability, and minimizing weight. If lightweight is your primary concern, make sure to look at the grams per meter, not just the diameter.
Length
The length of a standard piece of rope has changed over time, becoming longer as gear gets lighter, rope technology improves, sport climbing increases in popularity, and speed ascents are sought after. For gym climbing, 40m is plenty, and many classic climbing routes were established using 50m ropes, but today’s standard is 60m, or possibly 70m in some areas. You can even find some new sport routes where an 80m rope is needed, but these are rare. Having a longer rope can be beneficial, but additional length adds weight, so you’ll want to buy only what you’ll need. The best way to decide the right size for you is to look at where you will most commonly be climbing. Check out guidebooks, ask local climbers, or look on mountainproject.com to find out what length of rope most local climbers use.
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Additional Features
At this point we’ve discussed most of what you need to know to purchase the right rope, but there are three other features worth considering: dry treatment, middle marking, and sheath thickness.
Dry treatment
Dry treatment is a process that makes climbing rope less water absorbent by coating the sheath fibers with water repellant chemicals. “Double dry” treatment means the core is coated as well. Dry treatment is desirable because when a rope gets wet it loses much of its energy absorbing capability (stretchiness), making it less safe for catching falls. If you’re alpine climbing, ice climbing, or mountaineering then a dry treated rope is critical, because if the rope freezes while wet it becomes even more unsafe. For anyone else, there’s no downside to getting a dry-treated rope, other than the extra cost of $20-$50.
Middle marking
Middle marking is an important rope feature when you’re top-roping, rappelling, or lead climbing. In all of these situations, it’s critical to know where your middle point is, so you don’t overextend and get yourself into a bad situation. There are two common ways manufacturers mark the middle of a rope. The first way is by changing the rope pattern halfway through. While easy to see, the process of weaving two patterns together increases manufacturing time and price. The second way is by marking the middle with a black smear about 6 inches long. While easier and more affordable on the manufacturing side, the mark commonly wears out quickly and must be re-applied with a special pen (don’t use a sharpie because it can damage nylon).
Sheath thickness
Sheath thickness is the final feature you should take into consideration. A higher percentage means a thicker sheath, which generally means greater durability and resistance to being cut by sharp rock. For example, the Mammut Infinity (winner of our Best All Around Climbing Rope of 2019) has a sheath thickness of 40%, while climbing ropes generally range from 35-38%. The downside of a thick sheath is that it can make a rope stiff and difficult to handle, so finding the right balance is key.
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But seriously, what rope should I buy?
With so many options on the market and so many factors influencing your decision, it can be difficult to find the right rope. Here’s a short list of our favorite ropes for different use cases—they’re all a good balance of weight, durability, and value. If you want a few more options be sure to check out our Best Climbing Ropes Guide 2019.
| Use | Rope | Price | Buy Now |
|---|---|---|---|
| Difficult or Long Sport Climbs (Lightweight all around rope) | Mammut Infinity | $240 | REI Backcountry Moosejaw |
| General Trad or Sport Climbing (All Around Rope) | Bluewater Lightning Pro | $187 | Backcountry Amazon |
| Top-Roping or Aid Climbing (Durable Workhorse) | Sterling Marathon Pro | $235 | Backcountry Moosejaw Amazon |
| Long alpine routes (Super lightweight) | Sterling Fusion Nano IX | $228 | Backcountry Moosejaw Amazon |
Have questions for our experts about picking out a rope? Ask in the comment section below.
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